Corona Devotionals

Have you ever watched a movie or a cartoon (think Tom and Jerry ), where one character sets a trap (of some sort) for another character, and then we watch as the unsuspecting other character walks right into it.   They didn't see it coming at all.   That's how I feel with sin, and most often (for me), it is the sin of my tongue...and my (negative) words that impede God's plans, and bring me and others down in negative ways.  However, beyond the tongue, sin befalls us in all-manner of ways, and each of us may struggle with differing areas of sin---but we all struggle.   There are times when we know  that the devil may lay a trap for us, and (in God's strength), we avoid it.  We  purpose to keep a guard over our lips/thoughts/actions/impulses/desires...a guard over our SIN, lest we fall to it.   And--with prayer and preparation and with God , we can avoid sin and even be victorious over it.   Jesus looked at them and said,...

Have we suffered?     Are we suffering?  David was a warrior.  He fought hard battles in hand to hand (archaic) brutal battles,  and he handled tough physical feats that might make us faint to even imagine.  David was tough and he did tough things. But, remember , David was also a shepherd.  He was (at times) tender with lambs and (always) protective of his flock, and fierce if foes encroached on his herd.   But, for all of the bravado, and all of the bravery that David held...he was human too.  He hurt, and he suffered. He had enemies and foes and adversaries, just as we do.  But He loved God and sought to honor Him, just as we do. And the Lord promised His presence and protection and blessing to David... just as He does for us. David wrote to God: Psalm 132  (1) Lord, remember David and all that he suffered.  ~Psalm 132:1 David suffered , even in the midst of the physical and spiritual conquests and victories of his...

I was about five-people-deep in line at a store the other day when the cashier had to step away to help a customer. As the line grew longer and people waited, a few men in the front struck up conversations. We all heard as they exchanged profanities as if they were pleasantries, and then they compared tips about where to buy the cheapest bottles of alcohol in our city. One of them said that he had walked thirty minutes to get to this store because he had lost his license and almost died in a drunken driving incident recently. And yet another man let us all know that he had just given plasma to "make some money", and that all he really wanted to do was to go home, lay down, and have a drink. This.... this is our world, friends. Day to day we may live in a little bubble of church-goers...we might prefer to stay in our homes and our status quo churches...but the truth is that we live in a lost world full of lost people. Does this make us sad ? Does this make us mad ? Does ...

Ever think about what heaven will be like? I do. Will we see Believers that we knew?  Will we eat good food?  Will our pets be up there?  What will the weather be like?   Take a peek into heaven.   Imagine it...   But we do not have to imagine, because God has written to us in the Bible about what we will see in heaven.  The Lord has given us a preview.  A read- through.    Let's take a peek  at what we can expect in heaven. Ready to push-open the door?  Revelation 4 (1) Then as I looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me like a trumpet blast. The voice said,  “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.”   ( 2)  And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it.   ( 3)  The one sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones—like jasper and carnelian. And the glow of...

The Bible (God!) says to love one another .  “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  ( 35)  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”  ~John 13:34-35   The Bible says to love our neighbor .   ... ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’   ~Matthew 22:39 The Bible says to love your brother . But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for  you yourselves are taught by God  to love one another .  ~I Thessalonians 4:9 And... of course,  first and foremost, the Bible says for us to love the Lord  our God with all our heart, soul and strength. Jesus sa id to him,  “‘You shall love the  Lord  your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  ( 38)  This is the first and great commandment.  ~Matthew 22:37-38   “Hear, O Israel:...